


On Earth We're Free

by holyheckdarn, Justapersonable



Category: Original Work
Genre: Amnesia, Angels, Awkward, But just something, Cannabalism, Castiel is a third wheel, Cutting, Demons, First story, Immortality, M/M, Masochism, Mild Gore, More tags to be added, Murder, Negative Self Talk, Nicholas is... something, Not necessarily a good something, Original Characters - Freeform, Phoenix is a softie, Sado-Masochism, Self Harm, Torture, fast recovery, gay demons - Freeform, haha see what I did there, hella gay, my writing sucks, no beta we die like men, no hate please, oh yeah phoenix eats people, they can't remember their human lives, they hate each other at first but it works out, tragic backstory, you'll see why - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-13
Updated: 2020-04-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 23:34:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23125579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/holyheckdarn/pseuds/holyheckdarn, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justapersonable/pseuds/Justapersonable
Summary: Phoenix is a hard worker. As the head researcher and spell caster of Hell, he's become Satan's most trusted advisor. The job does have its drawbacks, but what doesn't? At least, that's what he thought before he met Lucas, an escaped demon that prefers the calmer ways of Earth, and leads him further and further from the darkness of Hell.Lucas was a lower-class demon, or in other words, a punching bag for the higher ups. However, one day he develops the courage to escape to Earth, and learn harsh truths about his human life. But Phoenix, the cold, unwelcoming demon that chased him down, might be the perfect person to help him move on.
Relationships: Nicholas/Castiel, Original Male Character/Original Male Character, Phoenix/Lucas (Original male characters)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 4
Collections: On Earth We’re Free





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone!! I have been trying for months to get the motivation to finally post something here, and today's the day! This is based off of a roleplay I did with a close friend of mine (who I hope reads this). Phoenix and Lucas are my characters, and Castiel and Nicholas belong to my friend. Please please please give me any suggestions/corrections/comments! I love hearing feedback to improve my writing! And also I will include trigger warnings just in case, because I often go into slightly too much detail? Enjoy!
> 
> Tw: mentions of blood, referenced torture, severe self harm, hiding emotions

It wasn't all bad. Spending every moment of your afterlife torturing any being Satan calls "unworthy", learning every spell by heart without getting a single flick of the wrist wrong, training yourself not to break down when you were deemed a failure, and your head slammed against the table without mercy; these were all normal facts of being "Satan's most trusted advisor, head researcher, and spell caster". It wasn't all bad, Phoenix told himself yet again as he ran a hand through his crimson red hair, wincing at the parts where he could feel the damage from years of it being viciously pulled. He recalled each moment he was lifted by the hair until he collapsed: 'four years ago; three months ago; ...one minute ago.' 

He was now on the floor of his "laboratory", shuffling away from the dried blood on the floor that forced painful memories into his head. Screaming, crying, far too many "Please oh god have mercy"'s to remember. It wasn't all bad, Phoenix desperately repeated to himself, grabbing one of his "tools" at random. He chuckled darkly at the thought that such a high ranking demon had to use such lowly methods to stay sane, as he placed the serrated edge of the saw against his scarred throat, at first lightly brushing it against his skin. When the rapid thoughts only sped up, however, he took a deep breath before brutally pressing it as hard as possible, rapidly pulling it back and forth. He could feel his vocal chords tearing apart, his trachea being horrifically punctured, and oh God the pain. The pain buzzed everywhere, but he loved the feeling. He smirked at the blood that now leaked everywhere, and relished in the feeling of the scrambling thoughts going silent once again in his head, as every part of him died but his consciousness.

'I wish I could just die.' This thought made him almost smile, although his body couldn't move. So he sat, left with his slowly returning thoughts of panic, and a useless body. 'I couldn't do that. The demons need me; Satan needs me. If I died that would be selfish. I belong here,' he thought, able to look around enough to see the now blood-soaked floor, the tools, the chair with restraints, the pile of decaying limbs and horns against the far wall, the dent in the table from every time he had failed. 'This is who I am.'

A few days later, as Phoenix tossed yet another severed leg into the pile, he noticed the bustling commotion outside. Curious, he stepped outside to ask about. "Hey, you. What happened?" A small, clearly low-rank demon looked towards him in fear, trying to gather his words. "Uhm, a... a d-demon actually.. escaped f-from Hell..? O-Of course it was a, a low-rank demon, so no d-damage?" The words sent a chill through Phoenix. The only way out of Hell was through The Portal, which was tucked deeply in Satans castle. Only trusted demons like himself could even get near it, how could this happen? He put up his typical cold, judging mask, not showing the confusion he was feeling, as he made his way to Satan's throne room. He didn't know why, but he felt that he had to take on this mission. 

He cautiously stepped inside, bowing deeply to a very unamused looking Satan. "Sir, may I have permission to take on the escaped demon?" At first, the devil's silence made Phoenix fearful for what could happen. But after a few moments of suffocating silence, Satan simply nodded, completely disinterested. Mumbling his thanks, Phoenix quickly went to gather information. He had a feeling this would be the start of something interesting.


	2. The Angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! This chapter introduces my friend Personable’s character, Castiel, so they will be the main author of this one. As always, please put down any comments/questions/suggestions in the comments below, and let us know what you think! Thank you for reading! 
> 
> Hey, Personable here. Just wanted to apologize for the change in writing style, it might be a bit jarring, I know. But I hope you like it anyhow! 
> 
> Tw: Implied torture

“Get up.” A voice growls, clearly not thrilled to be there. However, it does the job of jolting Castiel awake. He quickly panics as he realizes that his surroundings aren’t familiar. Something hits against the bars though, making a loud clanging noise that garners Castiel’s attention quickly.

His wide eyes turn quickly to the person who made the noise, and his panic is made worse by seeing that the person in question is a demon. Not great.

“I said, ‘get up’, that means. Get. The fuck. Up.” The demon growls again, pushing Castiel into action. He might not have been the brightest, but even he could see the clear threat of violence. With him up, the demon opens the door to his cell, takes his arm into a vice grip, and quickly starts dragging Castiel out of the cell and into the hall.

He stumbles, the demon moving faster than he can keep up with. The demon just narrows their eyes and brings their arms up to keep him upright, still walking just as quickly. Castiel doesn’t know where they’re going, and he’s too terrified to ask.

For some reason, he feels he doesn’t want to.

——————————————————

This time, as he wakes up, he notices he’s unable to move. At least, not much. Before he can really make any sort of movement, though, someone quickly enters.

“Ah, you’re awake.” A voice says, different from the guard that takes him everywhere. He tries to locate the whereabouts of who the voice is coming from, but he has a very limited view, and the person is positioned behind him, so he can’t see anything.

“You know, you’re lucky. Something just came up, so your session will be cut short today. But don’t worry, I’ll make sure to make it extra special, just for that.” The voice’s tone becomes sickly sweet at the end. Frightened, Castiel struggles as much as he can, though in the end, it’s futile.

He’ll come to learn that struggle is always futile, in this place.

——————————————————

Pain.

It’s something he feels a lot here, Castiel surmises. Burning, sharp, throbbing, all sorts of pain. They don’t really seem to care how he hurts, just as long as he hurts. And he’s heard, sometimes, others being hurt too. Sometimes, depending on how much pain and desperation are in their screams, it hurts worse than any of the torture they use on him. 

And some days, he’s just scared. Of it all. So scared. And he just wants it to stop. Those days, everything just boils over, and he cries, and he begs, and he just wants to go home. Go home, to his friends. His family.

He thinks of Poette, of her gentle, calming nature, and how she’s able to convince you that everything will be okay. Of Ayu, and her fun, boisterous nature. Of how protective she can be of the people she cares about. Of Malthus, a child, through and through. Caring and innocent, and a bit naive as well. He didn’t always understand everything that was going on, but he supported everyone regardless. 

And he thinks of how much he misses them. Misses quiet moments with Poette, and fun, silly adventures with Ayu. He misses Malthus, cheering the boy up whenever he got sad over the loss of another life. Helping him understand the things around him alongside Poette. Chaperoning the little adventures Ayu and Malthus would sometimes engage in on Earth, making sure they were never in any real danger.

But sometimes, though, when he hears it. Hears their screams. Screams of agony and pain. He just feels numb. Completely, and utterly, numb. Those days. Those days are the worst, he thinks.

And he thinks, as scary as everything else in this god forsaken place is, it will never make him as scared as when he realizes he’s numb. Because, he doesn’t remember anything like this. Of feeling anything like this. Being numb over another’s pain. 

He always felt whenever any of his friends got injured, worry and sadness over the fact. Always felt when he saw just how big Malthus’ heart was, pride and admiration, but also a tinge of worry, and fear. Always felt appreciation yet concerned, whenever Ayu got especially protective of him or another of their friends. Always felt concerned whenever he saw Poette stressed and tired after another long day's work, healing angels wherever she could.

Â̸̡̧̛̬͓̦̗̤̏̈̆͘͜l̸̳͔̟̮̲̳͇̜̗̍͆͂̓͌̓̿͛̕ẅ̴̨͇͇̖͉̭ã̷̛̞̯͈͔̰̆̒̈͑y̵̢̼͚̭̭̆̈́͌̚ṣ̵̥̌ ̶̼͛̒f̴̯̦̳̻̪͇̬̹̣͖̈́̒͆͊͛̽̚͜͝ẻ̵̗͉͔̮͆̉̆̌͌̏̀͌ȩ̷̖̖͎̦̘͚̱̹̋̍̍̅̄͝ͅl̶͔͎̺̬̮̲͕̼̺͈̝̈́̽́s̶̼̣̜̱̾͂̆̇͜ ̷̧̧̳̘̝̩̺͉̖̖͐̐̉͠w̸̜̪̮͛̈́̊̋̏͝h̷̛̞͒͊͗̃̓͗̿̃͌̅ê̸̢̩̘̲̺͚̖̙̳͗͊̇͝ń̵̨̗͔͝͠ ̴̨̨̠̠͉̬̇ḩ̶̠̥̳̘̩̻̹̳̱̾̽̂͌̀͜͝e̴̡̖̭͐͆̀̈́̈̈̆̐͝ͅ ̸̤͈̖̀r̷̛͍͚̲̻̉ê̷̡̖͔͈̻͓̖̼̫͖̱͆͛͊̅̌̈́m̴̝̮̀̉͛̚͠e̵̗̞͂̐͒͂̈̾̑̔̕͠͠m̴̧̼̪̺̓̌̈́͛͘b̸̡͈͉̤̺͖͈͇͋̀ȩ̵̳̱̼̼̘̮͕̥̊̆̓͑͜ͅr̷̢̜̖̹̺̬̖̠̞̺͍͊s̸̢̙̻͎͓͎̫͇͋̀͝ ̴̙̞͕̼̮̜͗͗̈́̌̉̕͘b̵̢̡̮̳͎͇͉̞̼͎̭̋̉ȇ̴̯͖̗͊̚i̴̭̹̞̔͋̑͠ͅn̷͚̜̩̦̭̥̋̈́̇g̴̬̣̈́ͅ ̷̙̖̺̙͠s̵̛̠̘͔̝̓̇́̄̄̉̄͜ṱ̶̨̡̪̱̲̲͎̘̞͖͌͗̓͒͂̽͊̕a̸̡̓̎̈́͆͐̽̂̃̕͝b̶̧̡͙̲͈̬̭͓͊̋͋̈̆̚͝͠ͅḇ̵̧̫̹͛͒͒̃͛̓̋̀e̷̪̫̘͉̫͑d̵̮̤̣̋̆̚͠,̷̧̦̟̪̜̆̂͜ ̶̡̼̬̪̦̲͕̌̃̒͆͑͋͌̇͝o̵̟͕̪͖̳̗͇̤̐̄́̈́̉v̸͔͇̝̮̪͕̂͘e̶̛̖̳̜̺̘̙̤̭̎̊̀̒̽͘̚͝r̷̭͙̓̌͊͐̽͆̾͠ ̸̛̖̪̫̙͉͕̈́̂̍̂͌̍̑͜ͅa̷̖̙̩̖͙̫̦̾͂̈̈́͑̂̾̃̌̄ͅn̵͈̾̑͌͠ͅḑ̸̡̱̭̼͆̀̐̐͌ ̶̮̝͋̂̑͒̅̾̍̂͘͠͠ŏ̴̭͓͖͎͚̪̮̬̠͇̈́͊̽̽̒͆͜v̵̨̺̖̬͖̂͌̀̎͑̓̅́̚͜e̵̟͇̪͇͔̤͋ṛ̷̹̒̒͊ ̵̜̭̠͙͌a̸̰̥̮̒̇͋͋͛͘͝n̷͇̲̹̙͇̿͂͆̄̔̚͝d̶̡̛͕̗̻͓̮̣̲̫͋͊̈́̒̾̊̇̈́̃ ̴̟̫̰͗̉͛ͅo̶͇̦̰̳̖͓̊̅̅v̶͚͙̒̓̔̊̐͊̅̋̔͝ȅ̷̛̥͓̪̯̈͐r̸̘̂̿̽̾̐̈́̋̐͝ ̷̲̻͓̭̣̣͖͋̊̓̋̋ą̵̲͖̪͖̮̗̼̜͓̘̎̾̅͑̒̄̿̍͝-̴͙̲̦͔̦͇͖͙͑̆̿

Today is one of those days, though. He’s numb, and in the back of his head, he registers he’s scared, too. But he doesn’t know what to do. He hasn’t known for a while. So he just stares. Stares at the wall of his cell. The ceiling, the floor, the guard positioned outside, anything he can. As if staring will give him an answer.

It never does.

——————————————————

He’s been here, a long time now, he thinks. He’s not sure though. Hasn’t seen daylight in a while. Not sure if it even matters whether or not he has, as he’s not sure it even exists here. The numb days have become a lot more frequent, lately. He’s not as scared of them now. He’s not sure if that’s a good or a bad thing.

He guesses it’s probably bad, but, honestly, most days he can’t really bring himself to care. He just wants everything to stop. The pain, the numbness, the tears, and the fear. He just wants it to stop. He knows it’ll never happen, though. They’ll never let it. Not by death, and certainly not by stopping the torture itself.

He’s asked before, begged really, when one of them was torturing him. Why they wouldn’t just let him die. It made them pause, and he hoped, maybe they’d stop, or at least agree to just let him die. But they just said he’s too important, if they ever need to make use of him, and resumed with the torture. Somehow, that answer made it hurt worse, somehow. He’s not sure why.

He’s snapped out of his thoughts when he here’s a commotion in the hallway, however. Curious as to what’s going on, he walks closer to the bars to see if he can decipher what’s being said through all the yelling.

“-escaped! He- He- He escaped! I- I don’t know how! I don’t know! But he’s not here!”

Escaped? Someone’s… escaped? At those thoughts, Castiel backs away from the bars, until his back hits the wall, as he’s stunned into silence. Distantly, he recognizes the fact that footsteps are walking in the direction of his cell, but he’s too preoccupied with his thoughts to really pay it any mind.

He can’t believe it. He really can’t believe it! Someone’s… someone’s really escaped this place? Truly? That’s… that’s…

Suddenly, he hears something jingling outside his cell door, snapping him out of his thoughts. His momentary hope is quickly sniffed out as he sees a demon on the other side.

The door swings open when they speak. “Come on, we don’t have all day if I’m going to get you out of here!” The voice rushes. He knew it, he shouldn’t have been so hopeful, he was such a fool- Wait…

The words finally register after a few beats.

“What?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! We hope you have enjoyed this update, and the introduction of Castiel! We’re working hard to make this story the best it can be for y’all! Feel free to leave a comment!! We love hearing from you all, and we’d be open to suggestions! Also, any feedback you may have would be appreciated, as one will always have room to improve, so don’t be afraid to speak your mind if you’ve caught anything! Thank you for reading! And we hope you enjoyed!


	3. The free(?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We finally see Lucas, and... he's not doin' too well...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! I, holyheckdarn, will be your author this chapter. In this one, we’ll see the world from the view of Lucas, Hell’s new escape artist. As always, please put down any comments/questions/suggestions in the comments below, and we’ll be sure to respond! Thank you for reading! 
> 
> Tw: Mild gore, panic attack, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it sacreligion.
> 
> And before I forget, we have character reference images!   
> Phoenix: https://imgur.com/a/R6WV7wf  
> Lucas: https://imgur.com/a/G8SvzRZ

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Claws. Hundreds of claws. He could feel each one shred at his skin, followed by the feeling of blood running down. He felt nauseous, unsure where he was or why he was there. “You didn’t think you could escape, did you?!” A voice caused him to remember everything. The voice of a demon. The claws tore harder, peeling into his chest and starting to bruise ribs. “You’re a demon. A worthless low-class demon. You belong in Hell; not on Earth. Never forget that.” And instead of the scream that he was trying so hard to yell out, the only thing Lucas could say was, “Yes sir.”

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

He woke up in a cold sweat, instantly feeling all over his body for injuries. When he found none, he carefully prodded at his chest. He almost panicked when he felt the large hole; but remembered when one of the higher class demons got frustrated and tore his heart out. Wait, where the Hell am I?! He quickly noticed the cozy furniture, the ticking clock, and the cool breeze that indicated that he was not in Hell. Okay. I’m still on Earth. I just hope the demons don’t come after me. After all, why would they worry about one stray demon? But he knew exactly why. Lucas had escaped, had actually escaped from Hell, and soon the demons would come. His thoughts quickly began to spiral. 

“Why did I even do that?! I can’t just run for eternity. At some point I’ll be sent back to Hell; and everything will be so much worse! I should’ve just let it continue, maybe eventually they would’ve even let me die. But now I’m stuck, I’m stuck forever and I’m never getting out; I escaped once and they’ll never let me get out again, I just… I can’t… I can’t go back…” The words became senseless ramblings as his breathing sped up, swiftly turning into hyperventilating. His long nails tore into his arms as he desperately tried to ground himself. If he had a heart, it would be pounding. 

“I DON’T WANNA GO BACK!!” He let out a scream, his face now drenched in tears. That yell held every ounce of suffering, every bit of grief and pain that he had endured the past few millennia. Time stood still, the only sounds being his relentless hyperventilating, and the resounding echo of that heartbroken yell. He wiped his face and ran; needing to go somewhere, anywhere. If I stay, they’ll come for me. I can't let them get me… I can’t go back… He ran for a few hours, ending up in the heart of the city. The few humans that were wandering around cast him worried glances, but ultimately said nothing. Finally, Lucas ducked into an alleyway, forcing his breathing to even out just slightly as he pulled up his sleeves, wincing at the sight. His skin was left hanging in patches where he had attacked his arms, his once blue sleeves now permanently stained crimson-purple from the unending stream of blood. He felt sick to his stomach. Using his sharp teeth to tear off the stained sleeves, he wrapped them around the wounds. Focusing on his injuries, Lucas realized he was a lot more calm. And exhausted, he realized, preparing to sleep in the middle of the alley. This was going to be a long night.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Claws. Hundreds of claws. He could feel each one shred at his skin, followed by the feeling of blood running down. He felt nauseous, unsure where he was or why he was there. “You didn’t think you could escape, did you?!” A voice caused him to remember everything. The voice of a demon. The claws tore harder, peeling into his chest and starting to bruise ribs. “You’re a demon. A worthless low-class demon. You belong in Hell; not on Earth. Never forget that.” And instead of the scream that he was trying so hard to yell out, the only thing Lucas could say was, “Yes sir.” 

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Lucas woke slowly, barely processing where he was or why he was there. He was quickly reminded, however, when his arms shot a dull, heavy pain through his nerves. I should probably take care of that. He dragged himself up, scoffing in mild amusement when he saw that the building he had rested against was a church. "Maybe God can help me. If it weren’t for the fact that he actively rejected me. Why is that, anyways? Is it my gayness? Did I just get unlucky? Or̷ m̶̮̦̉͝a̸͙̓ỷ̵̭b̸͉͒ě̸̪ ̸̰̀͒͜i̸̧̗̊̒t̷͎̤͐'̵̻̼̏̊s̸̠̜͗ ṱ̴̛̈́̆̑̃͂̓h̷̢̨̄e̵͙̩͋͊͠ ̴̙̬̏̇̿͊̈́̈f̷̭̭͇̼̝͎͍̍̀̏̾a̷̛̮̖͚̜͇͋̄̕͝ͅĉ̴̭̰͈̱̬͐̕̕t̸̡͔̪̅̈́͂͌̋̔͝ ̸͎̯͇̹͙̙̓́̒̓̾̄t̶̢̧̥̰̘̖̮͛̋́̄̀̋́h̵̳̲̗̎͐̽̕͘ă̴̭͉̫̹̰̑́̇͜͠ṫ̶͎͒̀̌̚̚̚ ̴̲̫͖̳̪̝̟̱̓̆I̶̟̹̼̫͈̺̹̯̫͐̐̕͘͜-̷̢̛͈̈́͝͝ "

Lucas stepped out of the alley, clutching his head. 

“D-did I just try to… remember?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! Thank you for reading! The end notes on the last chapter are kinda messed up, and I’m not sure if it’ll do that again. But anyways, hope you enjoyed the introduction of Lucas! Don’t worry, I promise we can get into the action soon. Please feel free to leave comments, questions, feedback, as it really inspires us! And poor Lucas, I’m sure soon he’ll get the relief and/or hugs he deserves, right?
> 
> ...right?
> 
> (The reference images for Phoenix and Lucas were made using https://picrew.me/image_maker/94097, not my art!)

**Author's Note:**

> Please feel free to tell me what you think of the story so far! My friend will be able to work on this story with me soon! My schedule will probably be fairly inconsistant, (my school was closed over coronavirus fear for the next few weeks so I'm not really sure what to do with my time) but I will put this story as top priority! Thank you for reading! (And somebody please teach me how to italicize text on here ok thank you)


End file.
